Winter Break

So this week is the last week of the winter break here in Sydney, and semester 2 starts next week. I guess I can say that I'm ready for Semester 2 and all that comes with it. I think my short stint here in Sydney has been really great and I've learnt so much from the people I've met here and from the experiences I've had so far. Just this winter break itself has taught me so much, as I spent time with friends and family.

I spent 1.5 days in Canberra with Christine and her brother and friends. It was nice to be somewhere new and to meet new people and being brought around and taken care of. Roadtripped down to Melbourne with the cousin after that and spent about 5 days with him. Haven't really spent that much time with the cousin before and it was actually really good. Spent time talking, having good food and just walking around the city and of course, playing with Cocoa.

The next highlight of the holidays was going on the 10-day Mission Awareness Tour with Australian Indigenous Ministries (AIM). 16 of us, uni students, went on the tour together to know more about the Aboriginal communities, their cultures and how God is working amongst them through AIM missionaries and workers. It was awesome, having to meet new people, sharing lives with them, cooking for them, chatting and singing around the bonfire. It's an experience I will remember for a long long time. Two things that I really learnt from the tour is how POWERFUL and AWESOME my God is. He provides for all our needs and He knows all that we need even before we know it. He provided for us through our fundraising (we raised much more than we needed through friends and family) and He provided the 16th member so that we could each save up quite a bit. Indeed, God provides much more than we needed. Having met Moses family (the missionary and his family) just reminded me of how God can use anyone. Talking to the Moses kids really challenged me to consider how I can further serve God and His people wherever He leads me to. Being able to spend time with the rest of the team was really great too. Making great friends out of this tour and knowing that we'll always have this tour to talk about and to encourage each other with. The tour can be summed up in 3 simple words that Andy says, "I LOVE IT!".

Another blessing that I have to share. Whilst on the tour, I received news from my dad that a family friend would be paying for my school fees for Semester 2. PRAISE GOD! Here's the background story for my joy in this. I tried to apply for the International Student Scholarships that Macquarie offers, but due to some reasons, I wasn't eligible for it. So the backup plan was to use the money that family and friends have blessed me with and money that I saved up to pay for the school fees. And then live on Yi Ling for the rest of the year. And because this family friend is paying for the school fees, I now can return the money that I borrowed from Yi Ling to pay a portion of Semester 1 and still have extra for living expenses. Yet again, God has shown me how He always provides for more than I need. Just so so so thankful to God for His grace and love for me. I am reminded that just as long as I follow His lead, there's nothing to worry about. Thinking back, I remember my dad saying "Don't worry about money. God will provide." And indeed, God has. Thank you God!

I'm reminded of Matthew 6:25-34, that what's most important is to "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well." (Matt 6:33). Truly I have been challenged to seek God first and His will and to trust that He will provide for all that I need.

Signing off with a photo of the team after spending the afternoon in a local school, doing Religious Education with the kids.

Macquarie Sem 1

With a blink of an eye, one semester is over. Just another semester and I'll come home a masters graduate. This semester is one that I truly learnt a lot about special education and also about myself. And there's just so much to be thankful for.

I did a total of 4 units - research, numeracy, communication with students with high support needs and effective instructions for students with special needs. And I really enjoyed them all. The communication and effective instructions units were related to my work at rainbow, so it was really enjoyable and there was so much new information that I learnt. The research one was good too. It was kinda like a repeat of what I learnt in Wheelock, just a lot more detailed. Plus, I like research actually. So though it was tough for others, it was manageable for me. As for numeracy, I like the unit and it was about giving effective numeracy instructions. I really liked how they broke down math steps into simpler parts to teach so that students can understand it better. But the prof made the learning a little too complicated, so it wasn't that enjoyable. Haha. I guess Semester one was good all in all. And I don't regret coming to Sydney to do my masters.

Learning about myself this semester was more interesting. I've never really done well in primary or secondary school. I was average. But things changed and I started to do well in poly and in Wheelock. I guess it was because I was finally studying what I like. Well naturally, I expected myself to continue to do well with postgrad. I mean I'm doing what I enjoy and I have some experience working with kids with special needs right? So I know I should be doing as well as I did in poly and in Wheelock. But God had greater plans. He reminded me about how my pride has taken over. That each time I thought I was better and that I knew more than others, my results came back lower than I thought I'd do. I am reminded to be humble, to simply just do my best and to enjoy the process of learning. That though I should strive to do my best, I shouldn't be putting myself on a pedestal. So now whatever the results, I am thankful that God pulled me through and that I really learnt so much in the units. And with this new knowledge and skills I've gained in lectures and in practicum, I know I can be a better special educator.

One other lesson that I learnt was a reminder through an OCF friend, Tim. I had a really bad paper where I missed out a full page of question. And I was pretty upset abt it. But Tim reminded us that no matter what others say and what our exams turn out to be, it won't make us any less as God's child. Exams can't take away our identity in Christ. It was really encouraging for me, cause it spoke of what happened to me. No matter how my grades turn out to be, my identity as God's child still remains and my salvation is still secure.

I've received my results and I've passed all my units. Of course I did better for a couple of units. But I am thankful to God for sustaining me through the past 4 months. He has helped me through times when I felt alone (though the sister is here), when I didn't want to study anymore, when I felt overwhelmed with the amount of readings. I'm thankful that He always gives me the peace that I need and for reminding constantly through people around me that He loves me and that He never stops watching over me. Thank You Lord!

Practicum

This is the forth time I'm writing this (on my phone) cause I forgot to save the previous times. Haha!!! Started writing on mom day and I finally got it!!!

Hello friends and family!!

This week was my third and final week of my first ever practicum here in Sydney. It was a really awesome and fulfilling practicum. The school I'm at is called Exodus Foundation Literacy Centre. This school runs a literacy programme for mainstream primary school students, who are 3-4 years behind their peers in reading and writing English. Exodus uses Australian programmes, like MULTILIT, Spelling Mastery and Reading Mastery, to help the students catch up. And it is amazing!!! Students who are motivated just catch up so quickly. The founder of Exodus, Rev Bill, and the teachers go all out for the students. Their dedication to the school and the students really is commendable.

Anyway, the programmes Exodus uses is really great. Of course every successful programme needs to be used correctly. And teachers teach the students the rules of English and strategies they can use to read and write. And really, English is just complicated and I think most of us really take for granted how easily we understood it. But for students who just have difficulty hearing the sounds, it's really confusing.

I'm considering to get the programmes back to Singapore. But because the kids I teach in Rainbow might be too young for this, I might wait and see how. I need to get trained to buy the programmes anyway. So maybe it's good to be trained and see how things go. :)

So because I'm a Wheelock Graduate, it's inbuilt to reflect on new experiences. And here are just some thoughts after the completion of my 3 week experience at Exodus.

1) Direct Instruction
In Exodus, the teachers don't waste time giving unnecessary instructions. The students know what is expected of them after the first few weeks. So they don't waste time giving them introductions and all. They go straight into the lesson after 1 or 2 minutes of rules. But of course they trained their students really well during the first few weeks of the programmes.

2) Positive Teaching
I've always heard of positive teaching, but the way they do it in Exodus (or maybe it's an Australia thing) is really different. They ignore negative behaviours and praise positive behaviours of the other students to get the students back to behaving properly. And really the students do come back and stop their negative behaviours. It makes me reflect about how I managed negative behaviours when I was a teacher. And I can do better.

3) A leader needs to be serious, and yet know how to relax.
This is easier to say than do. I've seen many leaders who are too serious or too relaxed. And it's hard to get a balance of both. But really a good successful leader who gets the full support from her team needs to be serious and at the same time be able to relax and enjoy the process.

That's about it I guess. It's back to the mugging hard at home routine again. Haha.

Thankful in good and BAD times.

Easter break just ended (photos are on FB) and it's back to school. I guess I wasn't that nervous about school since mid-terms were over before the break. But I didn't think it'd be so hard to get over bad results. Since tertiary education started for me (poly and uni), I've been doing well in school. Honestly, I've never done so well in all my years of education before. Secondary school was all about just passing exams, netball and student council. My netball teacher even had to speak to me about doing better with my studies or I'd be taken off the school team. So when I started to do really well in tertiary education, I forgot how to deal with poor results.

I'd always tell people to be thankful whether their results were good or bad. But I guess I forgot how hard it is to be thankful for bad results. Okay, my bad isn't the just pass kind. I did get credits for most of the exams (the grades are as such: fail, pass, credit, distinction), so I guess it's actually okay lah. Oh, I actually did fail an assignment, got like 5.5 out of 15 marks. Anyway, because I've been doing so well for the past 5 years, I had really high expectations of myself  to do well (like at least distinctions) or maybe I'm just proud or over-confident...

So for the past few days, I've been struggling to really be thankful. But I thank God cause He brings me peace and comfort that no one else can. There was girls group (the girls come together before OCF to share, pray, encourage and keep each other accountable) before the results came out and a sister-in-Christ shared with us Romans 1:18-25. This passage speaks of idols and how it turns us away from Christ. She challenged us to identify our idols and share with each other. I knew that my idol was success. I've been doing well for a while - school, student org, church, work... I wanted to constantly do well and I think I've been giving all the glory for my successes to myself and not to the One who has been with me through all the struggles along the way and who has given me the ability to achieve all my successes. Romans 1:21 says, "For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to Him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened." I think I've become like the romans - although I know God, my successes have become my idol. And when things don't turn out the way I want them to (results), my world seems to be crashing down on me. But actually no... Life still goes on. And my God remains the same faithful and loving God, the same God who carries me through it all, the only One who brings me true comfort and peace that I need to carry on. So yeah, I'm still struggling and learning, but day by day, I know that I'll get back on my feet and truly be thankful for my results. Each day I'm reminded of this lesson that I've learnt to be thankful in BOTH GOOD AND BAD TIMES. And I really thank God for His perfect timing in teaching me this, even before my results came out. He knew that I'd be struggling with it. But I guess it's becoming easier to be thankful in bad times and to trust that God has all of my life in His perfect perfect plan.

I'll be starting practicum (teaching attachment) next Monday for 3 weeks. Pray for me as I begin another phase of postgrad education, that I will be humble to learn from the teachers and children in the school. Pray for good health, I've been coughing quite a bit the past week. Pray for love and patience for the children.

I'll also be starting to serve in OCF and in church. Pray for humility and open hearts as I serve God and His people. I'll be helping with the playgroup ministry on Fridays (not sure how things would work out since I have attachment). This is a ministry for pre-believing caregivers and their toddlers. I really pray that I'll be able to use my skills in early childhood to reach out to the toddlers and their caregivers with Christ's love and the Gospel.

And of course, pray for me that I'll turn my focus on God and not on my own successes. Pray that I will be thankful in every circumstance in my life, especially with my results.

A month and counting

It's been more than a month that I've been here. I'm in my fifth week of school. And it's really different here. Before I go into the details of school, I thought it'll be good for some updates.

Ling and I have been in our new room for 3 weeks I think. The place is good - built-in wardrobe, own toilet, furniture provided for. Overall, it's good. But of course, living with strangers is really different and there's a lot to get use to. Their own lifestyles and ours not alike in any way. So yeah... It's good. Not excellent, but what more could you ask for right?

I've been going (trying to) for bible study with OCF (Overseas Christian Fellowship) at uni syd. Haha. Why not macquarie right? Cause since Ling goes to the uni syd one and I know ppl there, it makes more sense. And I hardly go to Macquarie anyway. And I've been going to the church that Ling goes to - Burwood Presbyterian Church. We both attend bible study on Sundays too. :)

Friend's wise... Most of the friends I know are ling's friends from OCF. All very nice and welcoming people. Great bunch I must say. I've met a few other international students doing the same course too. Met them during the international student tea session. So it's been okay. Trying to arrange to study with them. Haha. That's gonna be tough. Hahaha.

So... School.... I don't hate it and neither do I love it. The content is really enjoyable. But the workload is nuts. I'm taking a total of 4 units - effective instructions, key issues in research, communication with high support needs and effective numeracy. They're all real interesting in terms of content. But there's just so many readings. And you do them on your own. The amount of work expected for each module is as if the lecturers think you're doing 2 units a semester. There's quizzes every weekend. So you have to be on top of everything all the time. And I'm not. I'm like a week behind. And exams are next week!! Just praying hard that I will be able to just finish all the readings and going through the lectures.

So yeah. My typical weekday runs like this. Wake up, do qt, start work, lunch, continue work, dinner, continue work, sleep. My breaks are during lunch and dinner and I watch shows then. I'm trying to get the hang of everything so I can balance fun and work. But it's really hard. I don't remember Wheelock to be this bad...

Australia - Day 4 to 6

Update: I forgot to note down that on our second day here in Sydney, Ling found $10 on the street!! We had part of our dinner settled! hahaha! :)

Can't believe I've been in Sydney for 6 days already! It's been interesting really. Trying to recognize the roads and buildings, so that I can find my way around. It's still confusing. Wonder how Yi Ling did it back then. It must have been worst when she was here alone.

We've been searching for a place for us to live in for the rest of the year since we landed. And it hasn't been easy! We've seen a total of 5 rooms, 2 of which aren't even worth considering. The other 3 are okay, in the suburbs and sharing the apartment with strangers (one with 2 ladies, the other two with a working guy). We found 2 very nice apartments in the city and we have the whole apartment to ourselves, with kitchen and living room and toilet and all bills included. So we emailed in and the worst thing happened. Both persons replied the exact same thing - overseas and finding someone to take care of the apartment, cheap rent, keys kept at DHL office in the airport, payment online, ask for the same details from us, etc. The photos of the apartments were really nice. BUT it was too fishy. The emails sent were almost identical and the information given and needed were also similar. So we decided not to continue contacting them about it. Just too scary cause the rent was almost a third of the normal rental in other apartments around the same area. Do pray for us as we continue to search for a room. Ling is actually doing more of the searching online than me.

We went to church on Sunday (Day 5), the church that Ling has been going to in Sydney. A very small congregation, meaning everyone kinda knows everyone. The whole service was quite short, slightly over an hour. Cause they sang a song or two for worship and the sermon was shorter than the ones I'm used to listen to back home in Singapore. That's why the whole service was short. We then chatted with Ling's church friends, all very friendly. It's good to be new in a church, so that when you're back in your own church, you know how newcomers feel. And you know how to help them feel more at home. I stayed with Ling for her bible study. It was on the same topic as the sermon (I think it's how the church works I guess). Her group is kinda like YAM, different age and gender. Though some of the things shared didn't really apply to everyone, there were many lessons and things you can learn from the whole bible study. That's what's important. So it's good.

Here're a few photos of the food we had these few days.

These two dishes were from HK 烧腊 shop. Ling had 油鸡饭 and I had 烧鸭叉烧饭. It was really yummmyyyyyy!!! Went to this place with Karryn, Izzy and Jace when we came to Sydney 2 years back.

Ling cooked lunch - chicken mushroom and egg spaghetti. Never cooked it before, but it sounded good in our minds. haha! It turned out delicious anyway. haha!

This was our dinner - japanese food. It was cheaper than a lot of other food. And it was nice! the udon's texture was really really good! Love it. Ling's half-boiled eggs with rice was really nice too!

We also skyped with friends and family these few days. It was nice to hear familiar voices and see familiar faces. Always warms the heart!

With Love,

En

Sydney, Australia - Day 2 and 3

HELLO WORLD!!

Didn't update yesterday, so I thought I'd better update before I get too lazy and forget about the things that happened these two days.

On Thursday, Ling accompanied me to MQ for my orientation (for international postgrad students). She was so nice, helped me find my way to school. haha! I feel like the 妹妹 rather than the 姐姐 now. So sat at the LT for about 2 hours and listened to all the different presentations about visa, how to enroll into courses, MQ school life, where to go to for help, security and many others. I'm thinking about being more active in MQ, maybe join netball or a club or something. Or go for school activities and events. Still not sure how and what though. Oh, I registered for a buddy, also an international student, who is supposed to be help me out in transiting and adapting to MQ. (Notice the key word - SUPPOSED). She isn't as friendly or outgoing. So it's more of me asking the questions and she answering. I'm gonna try again to ask her about school activities or ask her to go with me. Hopefully she'll be a bit more friendly.

So after orientation, Ling and I tried to get a few administraion for MQ outta the way and headed to the city for lunch - RAMEN! :) I don't usually choose to eat ramen, but this was really quite nice! :)

After lunch, Ling and I headed home to rest for a bit. Then we headed out once again for inspection of our possible new rooms. Hopefully we can really find a nice place, near to the station, nice housemate and with own toilet... Haha! After the inspection, it was DINNER time!!! And because we were in Strathfield (and MANY Koreans live here), so we had KOREAN for dinner. :) YUMMMYYY!!! Had it the last time I came to Sydney with Izzy, Kar and Jace. Then we headed home.

I must add that the train and bus systems here are pretty complicated. It's so hard to get used to everything here. There are different cards and passes for the buses and trains. And they also go by zones or something. So I'm really trying to figure things out. And it's NOT easy! And most of the streets look the same, So recognizing the roads and all is difficult too!! Oh well, I hope I get the hang of everything soon. HAHA!

So... Moving on to FRIDAY!!!! --------------------

We slept in, till about 10am Aussie time (it's 7am SG time)! Haha! I settled enrollment for courses and found out that actually ALL my lectures (postgrad doesn't have tutorials) are streamed online! So I don't have to be physically in school. I just need my laptop and to pay attention at home and not get distracted by fb or blogs or tumblrs or emails. And I get to do what I wanted - RESEARCH!!! I know a lot of people hate research cause it's just too tedious! But I kinda love it (I have a love-hate relationship with research actually). I really enjoy doing what I'm interested in - inclusive education - and finding out new methods and ways to improve what is currently working or not working in the field. The joy of knowing that what you research about can make a difference is really so rewarding!!! Anyway, Ling cooked lunch for us and we continued with our own stuff online - her finding us new possible rooms, me continuing with enrollment.

Both of us got motivated to clean the apartment! She vacuumed the floor and I cleaned the toilet! I love cleaning toilets. 2 reasons: 1) I hate dirty toilets. I love them spick and span! haha. 2) I like the satisfaction from seeing the spick and span toilet that I just cleaned. Weird. I know.. Haha!

Then we headed out for another inspection. This is the best so far - clean apartment, big room, bed, 2 cupboards, a desk all provided for, bills and wifi included, cheaper rental, but shared toilet and owner is a asian chinese male. Ben is quite against it cause he thinks it's dangerous to live with a total stranger and what more a guy! Ling and I did think about this. But there are more pros than cons. So we're hoping to find another better place. Continue to pray for us! :)

So this short update kinda sums it all up. I'm hoping that the following weeks and months would turn out good and I'll enjoy studying from a computer and learning new things. haha! Oh, I may get a part time job at a childcare or school that supports inclusive education. Hopefully that will help a bit with the finances and with the learning experience here in Sydney.

Signing off with a picture of Ben and I skyping. We're both doing an action and I can do and Ben can't do! hahahahha! So thankful for Skype. Can spend time with the loved ones.. Skyping daily with the family and with Ben just warms my heart! :)

NIGHT WORLD!!

Love,

En